Guys with icons ?

[Wilson]

I hope you are getting video of this.

 

[GoMuscles]

^^^This x2

 

[ntm]

I started to, but you really can't see much from it.
The differences kind of have to be felt...

So far the fox's are smoother on the small stuff that was such a thorn in the icons side.
The spring rate is also much more appropriate, I feel like I'm driving the whole truck rather than just the front two wheels now. Turn in is better because of the lighter spring.
The icons would be so much better with a lighter spring.
Still forming a picture on the fox's though, I haven't run the really high speed loops yet.

 

[KaiserM715]

This thread, as long as it stays on topic, is awesome. Thanks for the updates, ntm. I am looking forward to more.

 

[ntm]

So I spent most of the day running around the backcountry at illegal speeds, when I was supposed to be working

I ran the chopped out washboard roads that started this whole thing, some really high speed rolling sand trails with decent sized whoops and g outs, and a bunch of other sandy clay stuff at speeds between 30 and 100 mph.

Here's my initial impressions with the icons behaviour still fresh in my mind.

Bare in mind that I was displeased enough with the icons low to normal speed behaviour that I shelled out another $2000+ to try something else. So I'm somewhat biased in that regard. I'll try to stick to the facts.

The fox spring rate is more appropriate for my setup with the thin leaf rear springs. Turn in is better than with the icons.
I don't feel like I'm driving a Segway with the rear axle following me around now. The chassis is more balanced in it's response on rebound now.

The RPG tuned fox's move.
This is in contrast to the icons that feel very heavily damped and sprung at normal speeds.
Low speed compliance is worlds better, I don't feel every little 1" bump.
Unfortunately they make a thumping noise at certain speeds when you roll over something and the tire falls out as you roll off of it.
I had to check my bolts a few times and make sure nothing was loose.
I presume this is from very little rebound control available at lower speeds with an internal bypass. It's similar to how the stock dampers react to these kind of bumps, but it's louder when it happens.
This is the lesser of two evils compared to the icons making my dashboard hum, and creating new rattles every day they were on.
I don't know if it was the spring rate or the digressive damping of the icons that made them uncomfortable for my kind of roads, probably a little of both.
Big improvement here, but the thumping of the fox's now and then, I'm not too keen on.


Now for the high speed stuff.
Both dampers seem to have about the same terminal velocity but feel very different.

The icons make you feel more and more removed from the terrain the bigger and faster you go. Kind of gives you a false sense of security. But I never worried about stuffing the front end.
Handling at speed was good, but vague.
Best way I can describe them is to say that they took all the compression hits you could throw at them, and never got squirrelly on rebound, but there were times when it was tough to tell how many wheels you had on the ground, and indeed they didn't droop out fast enough to keep you in 100% control when cresting a fast rough hill with a slight direction change on the other side.
That could be a byproduct of the high amount of rebound damping required for the heavy spring rate ?
Regardless, the truck is still ludicrous fast compared to the stock shocks.

The RPG/fox's drooped out a lot faster, probably part of what causes the "thumping" I spoke of earlier. Despite that fast droop, rebound control was excellent. And the thumping goes away as you go faster, just like the stock dampers.
There's more feedback at speed as far as what everything is doing, and it was easier to make small line changes at high speed in the rough without feeling like you are rolling the dice.
Bottom line, there were more wheels on the ground at any given time...
They soaked up all the big hits just fine.
More body roll was evident, which I'm okay with to gain low speed compliance.
I'll probably put the sway bar back on with the fox's.
Overall quite pleased with these.


So I'll be sticking with the RPG tuned fox's for now, they're riding smoother for me for daily driving, and were turning in slightly faster times on my favourite test loops.
Recognize that daily driving for me is primarily in the dirt with a bit of highway to get there.

The icons certainly have their place, they were no doubt born in the land of big sand whoops.
They'd be for the guy that drives on freeways 5 days a week, and the second he hits the desert on the weekend, the pedal is on the floor and stays there.
Their focus is just a bit narrow for my uses. The compression adjuster is a moot point as the softest setting wasn't soft enough for the majority of my driving.


Regards,
Nathan

 

[BIRDMAN]

So I spent most of the day running around the backcountry at illegal speeds, when I was supposed to be working

I ran the chopped out washboard roads that started this whole thing, some really high speed rolling sand trails with decent sized whoops and g outs, and a bunch of other sandy clay stuff at speeds between 30 and 100 mph.

Here's my initial impressions with the icons behaviour still fresh in my mind.

Bare in mind that I was displeased enough with the icons low to normal speed behaviour that I shelled out another $2000+ to try something else. So I'm somewhat biased in that regard. I'll try to stick to the facts.

The fox spring rate is more appropriate for my setup with the thin leaf rear springs. Turn in is better than with the icons.
I don't feel like I'm driving a Segway with the rear axle following me around now. The chassis is more balanced in it's response on rebound now.

The RPG tuned fox's move.
This is in contrast to the icons that feel very heavily damped and sprung at normal speeds.
Low speed compliance is worlds better, I don't feel every little 1" bump.
Unfortunately they make a thumping noise at certain speeds when you roll over something and the tire falls out as you roll off of it.
I had to check my bolts a few times and make sure nothing was loose.
I presume this is from very little rebound control available at lower speeds with an internal bypass. It's similar to how the stock dampers react to these kind of bumps, but it's louder when it happens.
This is the lesser of two evils compared to the icons making my dashboard hum, and creating new rattles every day they were on.
I don't know if it was the spring rate or the digressive damping of the icons that made them uncomfortable for my kind of roads, probably a little of both.
Big improvement here, but the thumping of the fox's now and then, I'm not too keen on.


Now for the high speed stuff.
Both dampers seem to have about the same terminal velocity but feel very different.

The icons make you feel more and more removed from the terrain the bigger and faster you go. Kind of gives you a false sense of security. But I never worried about stuffing the front end.
Handling at speed was good, but vague.
Best way I can describe them is to say that they took all the compression hits you could throw at them, and never got squirrelly on rebound, but there were times when it was tough to tell how many wheels you had on the ground, and indeed they didn't droop out fast enough to keep you in 100% control when cresting a fast rough hill with a slight direction change on the other side.
That could be a byproduct of the high amount of rebound damping required for the heavy spring rate ?
Regardless, the truck is still ludicrous fast compared to the stock shocks.

The RPG/fox's drooped out a lot faster, probably part of what causes the "thumping" I spoke of earlier. Despite that fast droop, rebound control was excellent. And the thumping goes away as you go faster, just like the stock dampers.
There's more feedback at speed as far as what everything is doing, and it was easier to make small line changes at high speed in the rough without feeling like you are rolling the dice.
Bottom line, there were more wheels on the ground at any given time...
They soaked up all the big hits just fine.
More body roll was evident, which I'm okay with to gain low speed compliance.
I'll probably put the sway bar back on with the fox's.
Overall quite pleased with these.


So I'll be sticking with the RPG tuned fox's for now, they're riding smoother for me for daily driving, and were turning in slightly faster times on my favourite test loops.
Recognize that daily driving for me is primarily in the dirt with a bit of highway to get there.

The icons certainly have their place, they were no doubt born in the land of big sand whoops.
They'd be for the guy that drives on freeways 5 days a week, and the second he hits the desert on the weekend, the pedal is on the floor and stays there.
Their focus is just a bit narrow for my uses. The compression adjuster is a moot point as the softest setting wasn't soft enough for the majority of my driving.


Regards,
Nathan

Very cool. I think you nailed it on the head. Enjoy

 

[Cleave]

and thread closed while all the good information is still here... just kidding

 

[Raptor911]

Nathan,

Please confirm that you are now running Fox in the front and Icons in the rear correct? And that you are still on stock springs in the rear?

 

[ntm]

Nathan,

Please confirm that you are now running Fox in the front and Icons in the rear correct? And that you are still on stock springs in the rear?

RPG tuned fox up front, icons in the rear, and national +3 for springs. And RPG bumps at 90 psi.

 

[Macman]

Great info ntm, makes the decision easier for me when I decide to upgrade!